Tuesday, June 26, 2012

that's a cherry tomato plant too! the difference? i didn't plant this!
yeah, i got about 8 tomato plants coming up down on the beach all on their own! and they are bearing fruit while the ones i bought (well, not really cuz Stephanie at Picket Fence gave them to me), are just barely blooming.

there is something to be said about growing your own produce.....DON'T! just let the river do it for you!

Monday, June 25, 2012

i was finally able to get close to Mama Duck tonight. the closer the eggs get to hatching, the longer she tends to stay on the nest & is reluctant to leave. we learned that from the last 2 nests. the good is, i can walk up to within maybe 5 feet of her & she won't flinch. the bad is, i don't want any of the neighbor kids knowing. so i also try to go out when no one is around so i don't draw any attention. well, without further adieu.....

i realize now of course, my ISO was a little high so it's a bit grainy. sorry! and here she is about 2 hours later, going back in for the night.

like before, i'm taking this photo (1) in the evening & (2) from up on the deck which is 100+ yards away so i don't disturb her. but i sure wish you could see the dance she does before hopping up into that nest. lots of tail wagging! it's so cute!

i also went back to the last 2 duck nests to see how long before hatching & i think it's about 45 days. since she laid the first 2 eggs July 16th, we have a bit to go. but since she's staying longer on the nest, my time could be off. of course that calculation took into account the days we walked the last two clutches out so they definitely hatch 3+ days prior to that. i'll try to do a better job on the math this time!

Thursday, June 21, 2012

okay, it's a terrible photo because i didn't want to go down to the dock last night & scare her off, but we did finally catch mama returning to the nest last night. it took her about a half hour of just hanging out on the dock before she jump up into the nest & settled down for the night.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

no, not that way, but it got your attention didn't it? haha! well, she is back!

you may recall we have been a foster family to ducks before which we talked about here as well as on the DailyBoxer. what i never did post was that our first adventure in 2007 (over on the DailyBoxer) did not end well - after 8 eggs mama abandoned the "nest" & Nacho had to take care of the eggs for me (no there was no omelet). but we all learned from it (us and the ducks i hope) and our next two hostings in 2008 & 2009 were much more successful.
the last time we had guests, was 2009 & every year we anxiously wait to see if a mama, any mama, will return. this year we got our wish - last Friday i saw a mama hanging out on our dock & just knew she was either house hunting or had settled in. she'd begun settling in by the looks of mulch all over the dock & the center of the planter dug out. this was starting out a lot like 2007 & that concerned me. but as i said before, we've all learned alot! so with that experience in hand, i did a little renovating to this year's rental unit.
we started with this little one bedroom number

i knew right away, based on the 2007 pot, this was not going to be big enough. when you go to your local nursery & ask to buy a planter that isn't for sale & they don't flinch a bit when you tell them why, but instead they offer it up for free, well you know you've got a partner in crime. Picket Fence was kind enough to let me pay for this galvanized tub - i cannot thank you all enough!

now we are getting somewhere! the new digs were looking more like this on Friday.

by Saturday, they were looking like this

a little hard to see but there are 2 eggs in there. we think she has since laid at least 2 more. her house got a little beaten up today because we've had some pretty intense wind all day & out there on the dock, that tub is the only protection - i hope she has renter's insurance. but mama duck is still hanging with us. fingers crossed we will have a little family soon - whether we get to see them move on like before, who knows, but i will settle for mama just making it all the way this time.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

i got the opportunity this past Saturday to attend a group photo shoot at a local shelter. the group organizes through the MeetUp site. a friend recommended it to me some time ago. i've never used it for anything before other than getting their emails about local events pulled together by individuals. i like to play with photography but, like all things me, have a very short attention span so struggle with focus - haha pun completely intended.

when i saw the Portraits for PAWS, they got me! anything animal related & i'm there. it was enlightening (pun not intended) to say the least. a lot going on at one time & varying levels of experience & equipment by members. i may not have learned a lot about photography specifically, but i certainly got my feet wet in a photo shoot. jockeying for position, waiting for that "right" shot, working with multiple levels of energy (the pets, not us), etc. i'm so glad i did it! besides, it will help me better prepare for this year's Portraits With Santa shoot that i know is being planned as we speak. i also hope it will allow me to feel more confident in volunteering my time at another local shelter that could use the photography help!

so here are just a couple of photos, unedited. i elected to shoot in black and white even though that may not be what works best for the shelter, i like the personality that it brings to a photo. besides, there were several other people shooting in color so i wasn't worried about what the shelter will be able to use for their site.

you can see more photos from the group HERE. i hope you will consider a rescue in the future. there were lots of great pets that really do deserve good homes!